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James Boswell
Joshua Reynolds·1785
Historical Context
Reynolds painted James Boswell around 1785, depicting the biographer whose Life of Samuel Johnson (1791) would become the greatest biography in the English language. Boswell, a Scottish lawyer and man of letters, had attached himself to Johnson in 1763 and spent the next twenty years recording his conversation with unprecedented thoroughness. Reynolds, who was Johnson's close friend and a founding member of "The Club" they shared, knew both sitter and subject intimately. Now in the National Portrait Gallery, the portrait connects three of Georgian London's most brilliant cultural figures.
Technical Analysis
Reynolds presents Boswell in an informal, conversational pose that suits his reputation as a raconteur. The warm palette and lively expression contrast with the darker background, focusing attention on the sitter's animated features.
Look Closer
- ◆Notice the informal, animated pose suited to a man famous for capturing conversation in his notebooks
- ◆Look at the warm palette and lively expression conveying Boswell's famous sociability and verbal energy
- ◆Observe the contrast with Reynolds's portraits of Johnson — the biographer's warmth versus the subject's power
- ◆Find the sense of genuine enjoyment in the face — Boswell was a man who loved company above all
- ◆Notice how Reynolds distinguishes each member of his Literary Club circle through subtle psychological means
See It In Person
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